My first session began in the Summer of 2008. My first pot that I made isn't really much of a pot. It's teeny tiny small and is really only big enough to hold something the size of an egg. (click photo to enlarge)
I am still very proud of it ... and of course how much progress I have made since then. I have moved onto ... bowls ... lot and lots of bowls. I took two sessions (11 weeks per session) with Instructor Janet Adams on Sunday nights. As you can see, I did improve from the "egg holder". This is a bowl that I made. This picture was taken July 27, 2008 with my cell phone will I was working in class. I was pretty proud of how center this cylinder was! It is one of my very first pieces. (click photo to enlarge)
I missed a few classes in November and December due to family events. I gave a lot of my pottery away to friends. Allie Cook got a round small bowl glazed in light green and blue. She now puts her big rings in it. For Christmas, everyone got pieces of pottery. My father got a medium sized bowl with blue crossover. Christa got my favorite "cup" piece that is done in black. My father-in-law got my one and only plate that I made. I liked it the most because of the glaze (dark blue and black) and the beautiful concentric circles in the middle. I need to post some pictures of these pieces.My mother-in-law got my very best pitcher with a handle that I have ever made. My mother got a piece similar to Allie's (the colors anyways). These are the colors of my mom's gift and the bowl that I gave to Allie. I love the way that these colors compliment each other and the cross-over just comes out beautifully. I love this little pitcher! It's so perfect. Right now at home, it has three little blue marbles in it. (click photo to enlarge)
This photo was taken with my cell phone while in pottery class, you can tell by the wooden table that the pitcher is sitting on, November 9, 2008. It was probably made in early to mid October 2008.Another piece that is very uniquely mine is a small pumpkin that I made as a project in my class. This is a photo was taken on October 12, 2008 with my cell phone while still working on it in class. I took it because I was excited to show Ben what I had done in class that day. (click photo to enlarge)
The finished product is truly amazing! 
Finished Pumpkin photo posted March 22, 2009) This is by far one of my best pieces! This bowl ... yes another bowl was made in October 2008. I like it so much because of the distinctive glaze cross-over using black and Neil's Green. The combination of the Black and the Green produced a beautiful speckled blue in the center. The pictures don't do it justice. (click to enlarge photo). 
I think overall I've had a very productive pottery year (2008). I am excited to continue taking the classes and improve my pottery throwing skills. I also plan to branch out and use more of a variety of glazes and techniques. I plan to continue to add the approximate dates on each piece as they are thrown, as well. Only recently, beginning on January 15, 2009 did I decide to which to Thursday night classes with Instructor Dick White. So far, I am already seeing an improvement in my technical skills. Today I decided to keep a detailed log of my pieces. A lot of people write down all the details of the pieces that they throw. I have only done this sporadically. I plan to be more consistent in my journal keeping. I've created a table like log when I will journal, the date thrown, size and shape of the piece, date glazed, glazed and techniques used, and any notes about the piece that I may want to remember for the future. I think that keep the log will help me figure out what I like best, especially for glazing and help me to re-create some of the things that I do like best.
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